What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for March 4, 2013. 

This is a service of the California Air Resources Board’s Office
of Communications.  You may need to sign in or register with
individual websites to view some of the following news articles.

AIR POLLUTION

Carbon pricing needed to control airline CO2 emissions: study.
Aviation pollution can only be stabilized by the middle of the
century if a price is set on airline carbon emissions, research
said, countering industry hopes that green goals can be met via
technology improvements and biofuels.  A European Union scheme to
force airlines using EU airports to pay for their carbon
emissions caused an international outcry, forcing the European
Commission to propose a year-long freeze of its law. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/04/us-airlines-emissions-study-idUSBRE92306I20130304?feedType=RSS


Cashing in on China’s air pollution. Bad air is good news for
many Chinese entrepreneurs.  From gigantic domes that keep out
pollution to face masks with fancy fiber filters, purifiers and
even canned air, Chinese businesses are trying to find a way to
market that most elusive commodity: clean air. An unprecedented
wave of pollution throughout China (dubbed the “airpocalypse” or
“airmageddon” by headline writers) has spawned an almost entirely
new industry. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/cashing-in-on-chinas-air-pollution/2013/02/28/91d65866-6ef4-11e2-8b8d-e0b59a1b8e2a_story.html


CAP AND TRADE

Little unity over California's cap-and-trade program. Businesses
and environmentalists remain deeply divided over California's
landmark carbon cap-and-trade program, with industry calling it a
job-killing nightmare and clean energy proponents saying it has
positioned the state as a global leader in tackling climate
change. The strong feelings over the policy were on display at a
conference last week in Sacramento, where business groups and
environmentalists repeatedly clashed over the market-based
program…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/04/us-california-carbon-idUSBRE9230Z720130304


Climate-Change Science Poised to Enter Nation's Classrooms.
InsideClimateNews.org -- New national science standards that make
the teaching of global warming part of the public school
curriculum are slated to be released this month, potentially
ending an era in which climate skepticism has been allowed to
seep into the nation's classrooms. The Next Generation Science
Standards were developed by the National Research Council, the
National Science Teachers Association…Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-04/climate-change-science-poised-to-enter-nation-s-classrooms.html


California's cap-and-trade chaos.  California Gov. Jerry Brown's
current budget trickery projects almost one-half billion dollars
in theoretical revenues from America's first carbon cap-and-trade
climate regulations implemented in California in 2013. 
Cap-and-trade air pollution controls set industry-wide limits on
emissions of carbon dioxide and other global-warming gases.
Industries that exceed their emission limits can buy (trade)
pollution credits from other industries to comply with California
air pollution standards. Posted.
http://www.examiner.com/article/california-s-cap-and-trade-chaos


Cap-and-trade opponents say 2015 is the year to fear. 2015 is the
year that businesses say Californians will feel the economic
impacts of the state's pioneering entry into greenhouse gas
trading. As the Golden State's economywide cap-and-trade system
gets under way, its backers and detractors are vying with each
other to predict its impacts. Last week in Sacramento,
representatives of businesses that have to turn in emissions
allowances under the market-based system warned of dire
consequences. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2013/03/04/4 BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

FUELS

Beta Renewables sees 2015 as boom year for cellulosic biofuels.
Biofuels made from wood waste and sugarcane have languished well
below expectations for years but new production coming on line
promises explosive growth by 2015, the chief executive of
producer Beta Renewables said on Monday. The United States
produced just 20,000 gallons of so-called cellulosic biofuel last
year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
That was a mere 0.04 percent of a 500-million-gallon target the
U.S. government set in 2007. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/04/beta-biofuels-idUSL6N0BW8D620130304


Ethanol Strengthens Against Gasoline on Motor Fuel Fall.
Ethanol’s discount to gasoline narrowed as the motor fuel slipped
more than the biofuel. The spread narrowed 1.95 cents to 69.51
cents a gallon as gasoline declined on the completion of seasonal
refinery maintenance. Ethanol declined in line with corn, which
remained near $7 a bushel. “Corn is still at a pretty high
price,” said Will Babler, a broker at Atten Babler Risk
Management LLC in Galena, Illinois. “And the market is going to
remain tight.”  Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2013-03-04/ethanol-strengthens-against-gasoline-on-motor-fuel-fall.html


Natural gas leaks come under scrutiny, raise questions on climate
impact. Cornell University’s Robert Howarth has estimated
somewhere between 3.6 percent and
7.9 percent of methane escapes during the production life cycle
of shale gas; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology countered
with a study saying it is just a fraction of that amount.
University of Colorado research scientist Gabrielle Petron, who
also works in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration’s global monitoring division…Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/natural-gas-leaks-come-under-scrutiny-raise-questions-on-climate-impact/2013/03/03/23d1e0d4-7f88-11e2-b99e-6baf4ebe42df_story_1.html


Natural gas bill pushed by Sen. Menendez could have aided firm
where top donor invests.  Sen. Robert Menendez sponsored
legislation with incentives for natural gas vehicle conversions
that would benefit the biggest political donor to his
re-election, the same eye doctor whose private jet Menendez used
for two personal trips to the Dominican Republic, an Associated
Press investigation found.  The disclosure reflects the latest
intersection…Posted. 
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/congress/natural-gas-bill-pushed-by-sen-menendez-could-have-aided-firm-where-top-donor-invests/2013/03/04/d040b02c-84a9-11e2-a80b-3edc779b676f_story.html

ExxonMobil begins its defense in gas additive case. Lawyers for
ExxonMobil have begun presenting their defense against the state
of New Hampshire's claims that the oil giant should pay hundreds
of millions of dollars to clean up groundwater contamination from
the gasoline additive MTBE. Jurors returned Monday following a
weeklong break after spending six weeks hearing the state's
witnesses. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/ExxonMobil-begins-its-defense-in-gas-additive-case-4326936.php#ixzz2MbZzIsh9


NY fracking health study news draws cheers, jeers.  While
opponents of fracking are pleased at a report that Gov. Andrew
Cuomo will wait for a Pennsylvania health study before deciding
whether to allow drilling, landowners are preparing to sue New
York over lost gas-leasing opportunities and an industry group
warned Sunday that a business exodus from the state will worsen.
Posted. 
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2013/mar/03/ny-fracking-health-study-news-draws-cheers-jeers/#ixzz2MbHIWU9G


VEHICLES

Peugeot Bets on a Different Kind of Hybrid. What’s that car that
just breezed past? It’s the Hybrid Air — an experimental vehicle
that the French automaker PSA Peugeot Citroën has been trumpeting
lately as an exemplar of energy efficiency. While some skeptics
doubt whether it is truly breakthrough technology, the Peugeot
and Citroën concept cars containing it may prove to be some of
the more intriguing models on display next week at the Geneva
Motor Show. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/02/business/global/peugeot-bets-on-a-different-kind-of-hybrid.html?_r=0&pagewanted=print

HIGH-SPEED RAIL

High-speed rail project targets 'disadvantaged' workers in the
Central Valley.  The prospect of construction jobs in the
recession-weary Central Valley has long been a selling point for
proponents of California's $68 billion high-speed rail project. 
A controversy has arisen, however, since officials pledged in
December to reserve a portion of those jobs for certain
disadvantaged people.  Posted. 
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/03/04/5233285/high-speed-rail-project-targets.html
 

New Calif. rail plan to make major improvements in Valley Amtrak.
 While many are chattering about high-speed rail these days,
state transportation leaders are quietly planning to drop more
than $15 billion into California's existing Amtrak train service
-- including a big chunk here in the Valley.  Improvements for
Amtrak's San Joaquin line are forecast in a draft of a new
statewide rail plan that the California Department of
Transportation is circulating for public comment through March
11.  Posted. 
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/03/03/3197481/new-calif-rail-plan-to-make-major.html


GREEN ENERGY

Gov. Jerry Brown works to spread California's green doctrine.
California is a leader on the environment, but it needs other
states — and nations — on board to keep down economic costs. When
Gov. Jerry Brown called on his fellow governors at a conference
in Washington last week to embrace a California-style pursuit of
cleaner air, he was doing more than reinforcing the state's image
as an environmental trailblazer. He was trying to protect its
economy. Brown needs other states and the federal government to
adopt key elements of California's environmental agenda, such as
reaping more energy…Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-brown-environment-20130304,0,7670187,full.story

 
MISCELLANEOUS

Obama Announces 3 Cabinet Nominations.  President Obama on Monday
made three cabinet nominations — for budget, energy and
environmental policy — hours before his first cabinet meeting of
his second term.  Mr. Obama introduced Sylvia Mathews Burwell,
the president of the Walmart Foundation in Arkansas and a
familiar figure in the Democratic administration from her service
in the Clinton administration, to be the director of the White
House Office of Management and Budget.  Posted. 
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/05/us/politics/obama-to-nominate-new-heads-for-energy-department-and-epa.html?pagewanted=all


Firms sue to keep California from adding BPA to 'blacklist'.  The
American Chemistry Council is suing the Brown administration,
saying BPA, a chemical in many food containers, should not be
included on a list of substances that cause birth defects. A
coalition of chemical companies is suing the Jerry Brown
administration to stop an additive commonly found in food
containers from being included in the state's list of substances
that cause birth defects. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chemicals-20130302,0,5161122.story


Obama filling out Cabinet, will nominate new budget chief, EPA
director and energy secretary.  President Barack Obama filled in
more pieces of his second term leadership team Monday, nominating
a trio of new advisers to lead the Energy Department,
Environmental Protection Agency and budget office.  The
nominations signal the White House’s desire to get back to normal
business after the president and Congress failed to avert the $85
billion in automatic spending cuts that started taking effect
Friday.  Posted. 
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/whitehouse/obama-filling-out-cabinet-will-nominate-new-budget-chief-epa-director-and-energy-secretary/2013/03/04/0099ed70-84e5-11e2-a80b-3edc779b676f_story.html


BLOGS

Foul odor reported off Santa Monica Bay; methane from ocean
blamed. Coastal residents near Santa Monica awoke to a foul odor
Sunday that probably was caused by a large release of methane in
the ocean, authorities said.  Fire departments in Los Angeles and
Santa Monica began receiving calls shortly after dawn from
residents as far north as Sunset Blvd. and south of Venice Beach
reporting a rank smell blowing in off Santa Monica Bay. A Santa
Monica fire hazardous-materials team took readings off the coast
near San Vicente Blvd. and found methane in the water, said
communications officer Justin Walker. Posted.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/03/foul-odor-santa-monica-bay-methane.html


The Downside To Cap-And-Trade For Carbon.  The problem with the
cap-and-trade schemes advocated by economists who know how to do
a Monte Carlo analysis just well enough to be wrong is that the
real world never matches up.  Europeans, who boldly venture into
every anti-science idea that more reasonable regions avoid, is
now scrambling not to kill its economy even more due to its
mandated cap-and-trade program.  Posted. 
http://www.science20.com/cool-links/downside_capandtrade_carbon-105265


Where Is the Climate Leadership? We Need to Get It Right on
Keystone XL. Mr. Secretary, I am disappointed. I thought that we
all understood that to fight climate change, we have to be able
to say "no" to dirty energy projects. Our friends around the
world are looking to us for climate leadership and it starts with
drawing the line at tar sands expansion. It also means that we
need to give health and environment a fair shake in the
environmental review of a dirty energy project such as the
Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. Posted.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-redford/keystone-xl-pipeline_b_2807098.html?utm_hp_ref=healthy-living